While contrary to Ethiopia's conservative religious ideals, a new law there makes access to abortions easier and has been one way the government has tried to save women’s lives. Before the law, a third of all maternal deaths in the country were from botched abortions.

The Philippines has one of the highest birth rates in Asia. But recently, the government passed a law, over the strenuous objections of the Catholic Church, that paved the way for providing free contraception. Reporter Aurora Almendral speaks with one woman, a grandmother at 33, about how free birth control could change the lives of the country's poorest.

We want to tell stories of people around the world giving birth. Take a minute and tell us what it was like when you gave birth — or when your child was born. Or call up your mom and ask her what it was like when you were born. And explore the stories we've received already.

Also from this series...

While contrary to Ethiopia's conservative religious ideals, a new law there makes access to abortions easier and has been one way the government has tried to save women’s lives. Before the law, a third of all maternal deaths in the country were from botched abortions.

During a global health reporting trip to Mozambique, Sonia Narang witnessed the challenges women and children face in one of the least developed countries in the world. Thus was born "The Women of Mozambique," a week long Instagram series that illuminates the lives of women through short vignettes.

The Philippines has one of the highest birth rates in Asia. But recently, the government passed a law, over the strenuous objections of the Catholic Church, that paved the way for providing free contraception. Reporter Aurora Almendral speaks with one woman, a grandmother at 33, about how free birth control could change the lives of the country's poorest.

Prenatal care consumes a big part of a pregnant woman's life. There are the monthly appointments, the tests — all on top of whatever is going on at home. And it can be overwhelming. But a new program, called Centering Pregnancy, tries to ease that burden by putting women in groups for their prenatal care.

In a new report, the CDC has confirmed that the average age at which American women deliver their first babies has increased in the last 40 years. The World and The Forum at the Harvard School of Public Health team up this week to discuss the repercussions of delaying pregnancy and parenthood in the United States and around the world.

Many women in Brazil want to deliver their babies by Cesarean section — for them, it is convenient, modern and clean. But others say they are forced into delivering their babies through surgery, in a country with one of the highest c-section rates in the world.

We want to tell stories of people around the world giving birth. Take a minute and tell us what it was like when you gave birth — or when your child was born. Or call up your mom and ask her what it was like when you were born. And explore the stories we've received already.

Last year, Kate Mitchell became one of the 32 percent of US mothers who give birth via Cesarean section. Yet her intention was to avoid a C-section. Guidelines released in February outline steps to avoid unnecessary Cesarean sections, steps that hospitals and practitioners agree with. So why do Cesarean rates remain at all-time highs?

Births started in homes, moved to hospitals and are now moving back to homes, at least in the developed world. More parents are choosing places that aren't hospitals for giving birth — and that presents new risks and complications.

We want to tell stories of people around the world giving birth. Take a minute and tell us what it was like when you gave birth — or when your child was born. Or call up your mom and ask her what it was like when you were born. And explore the stories we've received already.

As part of The Ninth Month, PRI.org is inviting you to share the lullabies your remember best. Was it one you sung to your own child? Or maybe one your remember your mom singing to a sibling. Share a link to a video or even sing right into your computer.

In Nepal, as many as a quarter of newborn deaths could be prevented with the use of an inexpensive antiseptic ointment, routinely used after childbirth in the US. The challenge is getting it to the women who need it in time.

As part of our project, The Ninth Month, we're looking at when women give birth for the first time. The United Nations gathered this data on when women in developing countries had their first children, and while it doesn't cover every country, it does cover a wide swath of the developing world.

In a new report, the CDC has confirmed that the average age at which American women deliver their first babies has increased in the last 40 years. The World and The Forum at the Harvard School of Public Health team up this week to discuss the repercussions of delaying pregnancy and parenthood in the United States and around the world.

Sonia Narang answered your questions about her story and her observations about maternal and newborn health in Nepal during a live Q&A on The World's Facebook page on Tuesday, February 25. Narang's report, part of our "Ninth Month" series, examined the efforts to change Nepal’s ingrained attitudes and behaviors around pregnant women performing strenuous tasks that put mothers and their unborn children at risk.